A New Revolution
by Tazmanian
Summary: A story of love and betrayal. And also a story of butt kickery. Based off of the story of my own life but with different names. There is a different revolution going on. But like the first, the dark side is treacherous. Who will win?
1. Chapter 1

Douglas sits on the ground with his back against a rock and watches the stars hang in the air like diamonds above the dark, jagged points of the pine trees before him. A tall, longhaired woman materializes out of the darkness on his left, emerging from the direction of a faint light and muted sound.

"Enjoying the view?"

"Douglas does not turn his head, but after a pause answers her slowly, "It's interesting… We win or we lose, they'll still be there. The stars; they'll still be shining down on us exactly as they are now. Puts things into perspective."

"We are going to make a difference. Look, I understand you're embarrassed or ashamed, but you can still come to the party."

Douglas laughs bitterly, "Shelley, why should I be ashamed of doing my job? My plan worked wonderfully, as always, and I was able to safely account for unforeseen circumstances. I ran away because I saw no need to put myself in danger. As for why I am relaxing here, I would rather be in solitude."

"Aw, come on… Join the party and have a little fun for once. Please?"

Douglas turns to stare at Shelley, and then sighs as he rises to his feet. She smiles at him and then leads him towards the warm glow of the firelight in the distance.

In the main camp of the Rebellion, Douglas watches Shelley out of the corner of his eye as he pretends to drink a goblet of wine. She was standing under a tree watching him with a smile. Douglas thinks to himself, _what is that hanging above her head? Mistletoe. At least two choices here. She could be expecting me to kiss her, meaning she really does like me. And if I do kiss her, something I really want to do, I'll be closer to winning her affections than Vince. But on the other had, if she doesn't even know she's standing under some mistletoe, I'll completely surprise her. And if I surprise her like that when she really doesn't like me I'll only succeed in turning her even further against me. It would be highly embarrassing, and I'd lose respect from people here. Since I make the plans for them, I can not afford to lose any respect. So… I shall not kiss her._

Relaxing as he made up his mind, Douglas turns away and bumps into Vince on accident. The handsome leader of the Rebellion was quickly walking towards Shelley with a confident smile on his face.

"Sir, congratulations on defeating the Emperor's latest general." Douglas smiles at Vince, inwardly wincing in anticipation of the coming rebuke.

"Thank you Doug, and uh… nice job running away like a cowardly child," Vince frowns in mild annoyance.

"Were you just hit in the head a few too many times, or could you never tell the difference between running away and retreating from a bad tactical situation?"

"That was a bad tactical situation? I could survive, so you should not be trying to justify your cowardliness. If I made it out alive, you could too. Oh wait, no you couldn't, you couldn't fight your way out of a paper bag."

Douglas just keeps smiling at Vince, his eerily calm visage concealing the cold fury underneath. He turns to Shelley, who has been apprehensively watching this exchange, and bows.

"I beg your pardon, miss." Douglas suddenly spins and catches Vince with a hard right hook to the jaw, sending the rebellion leader sprawling on the ground. Vince quickly recovers, leaping to his feet and drawing the sword at his side as he snarls in anger. Douglas just laughs and quickly borrows a rapier from a nearby spectator's scabbard.

"You should learn to keep a civil tongue in your mouth, _sir_."

"I am through with your insubordination!" Vince shouts angrily and leaps forward as he strikes at Douglas. The wiry strategist leaps backwards and slices out, but is parried by Vince. The two silently continue their stubborn duel, glaring angrily at each other. Finally, Vince lunges forward as Douglas leaves an opening in his guard and stabs his foe in the left arm. But Douglas has the tip of his blade at his leader's throat.

"Yield to me," Douglas glares coldly at Vince, who pulls his sword out and tries to back away. Douglas steps forward quickly and the tip of the rapier digs into Vince's throat. "Yield or I kill you now and to hell with the rest."

With a frustrated sigh Vince drops his weapon and crosses his arms. Acutely aware of the gathered crowd watching him with shocked expressions and held breaths, Douglas flips his rapier around, returns it to its owner, and walks away without a backwards glance.

"Mark my words, you little bastard, I'll be rid of you yet". Vince glares daggers at Douglas' retreating back as he mutters quietly to himself.

Douglas walks into the medical tent, and without so much as a greeting to the man sitting in there already, takes off his shirt and sits down on a table. The doctor, a man who looks a year or two older than Douglas, still in the prime of his life and possessing a kindly disposition, looks up from his book and sighs.

"Why did Vincent stab you?"

"Might have had something to do with me punching him out for calling me a coward and then dueling him into submission," Douglas chuckles slightly. "Could you stitch me up, Doc?"

"I would have thought you would have been off skulking, seeing as how everyone ignored your nice plan again." The Doctor disinfects the wound.

"It's nice to know you at least can appreciate sound tactics Matt." Douglas winces as Matt starts disinfecting and stitching his shoulder. "But yeah… I was relaxing alone, but then Shelley found me and told me to come to the party."

"Out of idle curiosity, is there anything you wouldn't do for her? Anything at all you would draw the line at?"

"No." Douglas tries to smile as if he were joking, but finds gravity just takes his attempts right off his face.

"Hm. So… why is it you're always at ends with Vince? Do you think you can do better?"

"Ah… No. I mean, he is the destined leader. And I don't have a fraction of his charisma," Douglas sighs as he watches his friend work. "It's like this: I love him, he's a great guy and he is the one who will save all our asses. However, he sees my intellectual and strategic prowess as a threat or challenge to his leadership."

Matt raises an eyebrow. "Oh, so it has nothing to do with the fact that you are both in love with the same woman?"

"…Exactly." Douglas jumps to his feet and pulls his shirt back on. "Great talking with you, Doc".

"One thing," the doctor smiles at his patient. "How did you beat Vince in a duel?"

"Well, Vince is a nice guy, and for all that he hates me he wasn't going to kill me. Especially with Shelley standing there. So I allowed him to stab me and then held the point to his throat and bluffed that I would kill him if he didn't yield." Douglas laughs and then turns to leave. Matt puts back his medical supplies and watches with a wry smile as Douglas walks out of the warm, lit tent and into the cold night.


	2. Chapter 2

On the early morning after the night the preceding events took place, as the pine trees in the east dragged the sun kicking and screaming into the new day, the Rebellion's council gathered in the meeting tent. They slowly file in and take their seats around the wooden and circular table. Vince sits at the head of the table, in the sense that wherever he sat was instinctively regarded as the head of the table. On his left sits Shelley, the Princess of Lahiana. Lahiana was a fair sized country, but the evil overlord Decker invaded it with his powerful army and killed both the King and Queen. Shelley managed to escape, along with most of her army, knowing that it would be better to find the Rebellion instead of trying to fight Decker's army. The Lahianans make up over half of the Rebellion's total troops. On Vince's right sits General Drew, a loyal soldier and an all around good man. He was formerly impressed into Decker's army, but tormenting innocents was appalling his own personal sense of honor, and he defected to the Rebellion. To his right sat the other General in charge of soldiers, Joseph. Joseph's sense of morality was even stricter than Drew's. Devout in his beliefs on properness and etiquette, he was still a trustworthy man. On Shelley's left Leigh gracefully folds into her chair and smiles at the two generals across from her. Leigh was one of those annoying bubbly types, the kind that don't even know the aesthetic value of a frown or the therapeutic worth in a good bad-tempered sulk. Her role is that of a quartermaster; she managed the domestic needs of the Rebellion and cheerfully insisted on being called the Secretary of the Home. On the opposite end of the table, directly across from Vince, Douglas languidly takes his chair. Not much was known about Douglas, only that he approached the Rebellion one day almost a year ago and calmly outlined how they could improve their effectiveness and decrease their casualties while he was being detained and searched. He quickly proved his devotion and served the movement in the capacity of strategist since.

Vince opens the meeting as he clears his throat and gazes at each member of the council in turn.

"First things first, we could use more weapons, so I want to raid one of Decker's armories."

"Yes sir, I'll get on planning that," Douglas remains passive on the outside, but inwardly he is frowning, as he recently advised against any further arms-collecting raids.

"Actually, Joseph will be planning this mission," Vince makes a motion with his hand and two guards suddenly step behind Douglas and grab him by the shoulders. "You are going to be spending some time in the stockade."

Douglas goes absolutely still as his face grows cold and blank. He struggles to keep a tight grip on all of the emotions running through his mind and heart, and most of all he tries to control himself so he does not leap across the table and attack Vincent. Finally, he speaks in a low voice, ignoring all of the other shocked expressions from his fellow council members as he focuses on the man across from him.

"May I ask why?"

"Well, the more recent plans of yours have met with some interestingly close victories. I suspect you have been turned as a spy and agent against us and your plans are devised to hurt us. So if this mission is successful, we might know whether or not you are a spy."

"Your logic is greatly flawed; I hardly know where to begin disproving your theories," Douglas speaks in a bland monotone as his impassive face ignores the other men and women around the table, all of them being stunned into silence. However, his eyes burn with a cold fury that makes Vince frown somewhat and imperceptibly lean away.

"Hm. Regardless, you are hereby confined to the stockade and to be placed under close guard until further notice."

"At your command, sir." Douglas stands up and delivers a salute that Vince returns slowly. The fallen strategist turns sharply on his heel and falls into step between his guards and they lead him into the iron prison. Shelley makes a strangled sob and flees from the table to her tent. Leigh quickly hurries after her. Drew and Joseph exchange stony, troubled glances and then turn to Vince, remaining seated. They begin to talk about their plans for the upcoming battle, studiously refraining from broaching the subject of Douglas' imprisonment, as if they came to an unspoken but mutual agreement that it was too soon to talk about it, and that they had work to do. Or maybe they just agreed with their leader.


	3. Chapter 3

A month later, Douglas was released after Vince reluctantly admitted he had no proof. After half a day of reviewing the current state of the army, the strategist announced that they were finally ready for the big battle. He drew up plans for the siege of Decker's castle that were cursorily approved by his subordinates. The camp sprang into action.

After a few hours hard fighting, Vince, Shelley, and Douglas snuck into the castle with the intent of fighting the Emperor. Shelley was left behind in an antechamber to protect their rear and was promptly attacked and taken prisoner. The hero finally confronted his nemesis.

"It's over Decker. I kill you now and then I abolish every last trace of your evil empire."

"I'm sorry Vincent, but it's really not that simple."

Vince stiffened as he felt the sword blade stab through his chest from behind. His last thought before succumbing to the darkness was to wonder how Douglas had allowed someone to sneak up behind him.

"Checkmate."

Douglas returns from disposing of Vince's body, "Emperor, all of the Second Guard Division have been slaughtered or have defected. Elements of the First Guard have reported initial contact with the rebel forces. We are going to have to leave your palace and move to a loyal stronghold under cover of darkness."

"Yes, yes, you're right…"

"I'm going to need you to change into dark, quiet clothes and prepare for travel, sir."

"And yourself?"

We have time," Douglas grinned at the clock hanging on the wall. "I think I deserve to… _enjoy_ the company of our new prisoner."

Shelley's heart leapt as she looked up to see two guards escorting Douglas into her cell. He was alive and he was here, and now everything would be all right. Her gleeful relief quickly turned to confusion as he gestured to her guards.

"Leave us now. Go to the main defenses." The two unkempt soldiers grinned and nudged each other before leaving.

"D-Douglas? What's going on?"

"Vincent was correct. I have always been an agent of the Empire. After we left you behind, I quite literally stabbed the fool in the back. This charade of a rebellion is over," if Shelley was not busy just trying to comprehend what Douglas was telling her she would have noted a sardonic smile twisting his lips. "Long live the Emperor".

"…

"…

"…

"You bastard!" Douglas watches unflinchingly as she lunged at him against her chains. His sole reaction was a troubled flicker in his eyes as he stares into her murderous visage.

"I'll kill you! You monster! Was everything a lie!? Every word and every gesture a toll for you!? You betrayed my trust and you killed him! Rot in hell you goddamned soulless bastard!" Shelley continued on in this vein for quite some time, cursing fiercely and furiously enough to make the average man quail under the sheer force of her ire. Douglas waited calmly. Finally, after a particularly colorful invective, he interrupted.

"There, the guards are long gone by now. Be quiet and listen very carefully," Douglas spoke softly but quickly. "Vince is in a closet near where you were captured. I stopped his bleeding by he doesn't have much time left."

"What—"

"Hush. With the setting of the sun the west gate has been left unguarded. You can take Vince out through the gate and then sneak the army in. Every regiment in the city thinks each other are protecting that part."

"Wait—"

"I can't. Forgive me Shelley," Douglas steps forward to press a key ring into her open palm before walking towards the door.

Shelley's vision swam and a horrible sense of bewilderment flooded over her. Through her hopeless confusion a semi-coherent thought floated to the top of her head. She squeezed the key in her hand tightly until the question she wanted to ask came.

"Why—"

"There is no answer to that question, and there never will be." And then he was gone.

The Grand Emperor crashed through a bush and found himself in a clearing that gradually darkened as the waning moon danced behind the clouds.

"I can't see a damn thing. What is this, a sign nailed to a tree? What do you think Douglas, are we far enough to safely have a light?" Without waiting for an answer Decker lit his torch and held it up to the tree in the middle of the clearing. He was still puzzling out the contextual meaning of the word "Checkmate" when a score of arrows struck him, killing him instantly.

When the sun finally rose the next morning, it gazed steadily on a number of corpses that would have appalled less divine eyes. Hundreds upon hundreds of rebellion fighters lay dead on the bloody plains, killed by the flawed plans Douglas gave to his generals. Half of the Imperial First Guard Division lay slaughtered in the streets after Douglas ordered the west gate left undefended and the rebellion forces seized the city. A mile away from the castle, in a clearing in the forest, the body of Emperor Decker lay next to a tree, killed by a complement of archers. These archers were ordered to lie in wait and then to fire at any light they saw. Douglas told these Imperial bowmen that he was going to try to lead Vince there.

A little over a day later, after the celebrations died down, the whole free nation was abuzz with gossip. Vince had recovered from his supposedly superficial wound and was hard at work establishing the government he had dreamed of. People started sharing theories on the fate of the young strategist, who was never seen after the battle.

The next day Vince was unanimously voted president of the new government he had created. His election was overshadowed by widespread rumors to the effect that Douglas really was a traitor and had sabotaged the final battle against the rebellion. General Justin arrested three men for burning an unflattering effigy of the strategist, even though he privately suspected Douglas would have been pleased by stealing the attention away from Vince.

A day later and the new gossip was that Vince had proposed to the Princess of Lahiana. In telling, this rumor was immediately followed by one that claimed she had refused. Leigh asked Drew privately if he didn't think that Shelley was becoming more reclusive and depressed day by day.

Four days after the final battle, Doctor Matthew stated that Douglas' body was never found. President Vince spoke in public that Douglas was "a despicable traitor, who killed many of us and probably fled after his vile master was killed".

Three days after this announcement the gossip had died down drastically. Late at night Matt saw, or thought he saw, something that would have proved incredibly interesting to the nation had he been so inclined as to share it, but that was not in his nature. And how could he even be sure of what he saw, seeing as how it had been seven days since Matt had observed a certain profile. So the good doctor turned his back and told nobody that he watched somebody who might have been Shelley walk out of the castle gate, hand in hand with a slightly familiar silhouette.


End file.
